By Philip Pullella
DARWIN, Australia (Reuters) - Pope Benedict landed inAustralia on Sunday where he says he will apologise for asexual abuse scandal that rocked the Roman Catholic Church inthe country, vowing that everything possible would be done toprevent a recurrence.
The Pope, on his way to Australia for the Church's WorldDay of Youth, also told reporters during an in-flight newsconference that he hoped the Anglican Church would not suffer aschism or further fractures because of a decision to ordainwomen bishops.
He also said he wanted his presence among hundreds ofthousands of young people to be an impulse for the protectionof the environment in order to "rediscover in the earth theface of the creator" and effect lifestyle changes to save theplanet.
"It is essential for the Church to reconcile, to prevent,to help and also to see (its) guilt," he said. "It must beclear. Being a priest is incompatible with this behaviourbecause priests are in the service of our Lord," he said.
"We have to reflect on what was insufficient and oureducation and our teaching (of priests). This is the essentialcontent of what we will say (as we) apologise," he said,adding, "we will do everything possible to heal and reconcilewith victims".
The issue of sexual abuse of minors by priests has been amajor scandal in several countries around the world after localchurches were found to have moved the abusers from parish toparish instead of defrocking them or reporting them toauthorities.
When he visited the United States last April Pope Benedictspoke repeatedly about the "shame" the scandal had wrought onthe Catholic Church. He also met with abuse victims.
Broken Rites, a group which represents abuse victims inAustralia, has a list of 107 convictions for sexual abuse butsays the real number is higher and only a handful go to court.
Victims say the Catholic Church in Australia continues tocover up abuse by clergy despite issuing an apology for pastabuse and compensation.
Some victims of sexual abuse plan to protest during thePope's visit to Sydney.
FRAGMENTATION
Another main issue discussed by the Pope during thein-flight meeting with reporters was the crisis gripping theAnglican Church, which risks fragmentation over a decision by aChurch synod to ordain women bishops.
The decision, which follows the admission of women to thepriesthood, has prompted a number of Anglicans opposed to themove to express a desire to convert to Catholicism.
"My essential contribution can only be prayer," he said inresponse to a question about the current crisis in the70-million-member Anglican community, whose mother church, theChurch of England, split with Rome in 1534.
Next week, Archbishop of Canterbury, Rowan Williams, ishosting the Lambeth Conference, the 10-yearly meeting ofAnglican bishops from around the world.
But the conference faces mass defections by conservatives,mainly from Africa, Asia and South America, who were vehementlyopposed to the ordination of openly gay U.S. bishop GeneRobinson and the blessing of same-sex marriages in Canada.
"The desire is that schisms and new fractures can beavoided," Pope Benedict said, adding that Catholic Church wouldnot "intervene immediately" in their decisions.
The Pontiff also said a main theme of the youth festivitiesin Sydney would be to raise consciences about environmentalproblems.
He said he hoped his trip could provide an impetus "to facethis great challenge to rediscover in the earth the face of thecreator, to rediscover our responsibility before the creatorfor his creation that has been entrusted to us, to find theethical capacity for a style of life that is necessary if wewant to change the problems."
After landing for a refuelling stop in Darwin in northernAustralia, the papal plane will continue on to Sydney. Hereturns to Rome on July 21. (Editing by Valerie Lee)
